La belle au bois dormant
by aep2398
Summary: Katie/Oliver. Takes place during Katie's stay at St. Mungo's. Lots of fluff. R/R One-shot.


Le belle Au bois dormant

By: aep2398

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, I am not doing this for profit.

I am doing it for cyber cookies. :)

* * *

_"They're not sure she'll make it..."_

_"Mrs. Bell's been crying, saying she's going to lose her only child..."_

_"...could you come please?"_

_"You're the only one who really understood her."_

It was 3:14 AM on a Saturday. Practice had taken a toll on Oliver. He had purple bags under his eyes, and his throat sounded smoky from the cold he had got from playing in the rain. His arms were sore from holding on so tightly to the broom. He had the shakes, from his cold apartment. He was diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue. And now this.

Katie Bell- his best chaser- had been cursed. The Weasley brothers had sent him a letter, with touches of sympathy, but it was obvious they thought Katie needed him. He read over the letter again, running a hand through his hair, which was falling apart in tufts. Her friends only saw her once. McGonagall wouldn't let them go again. She was lonely. She could die. That was all he knew. McGonagall wouldn't let them see her. She was lonely. She could die.

Oliver went to the bathroom, and locked the door. He turned on the shower water, so it was a quarter past the half line. Just enough. Then he slipped his shirt over his head, and turned to face sideways. There was a long scar down his spine. His breath sped up. He had gotten it in a duel, in 4th year. Katie was his second. When he got a large cut, from the 5th year boy who had the nerve to insult him, Katie had immediately jumped in, to fight for him. She was real impulsive like that.

Slipping inside the shower, he turned the water up another quarter. His legs turned pink. He stood in the shower for a second, and then squeezed a dollop of shampoo into his hand. Mr. Merlin's Squeaky- Clean Shampoo in Pine Fresh. He flipped open the top of the matching shower gel, and he rubbed that in circles all over his body with his knuckles.

Slipping out of the shower, he wrapped a towel around his waist. Shivering, he turned up the heat.

He quickly dressed, in a dark red turtle neck, and jeans. Muggle clothes. With a swallow, he apparated to St. Mungo's.

"Katie Bell, please," he said in a husky voice, to a women talking on the phone.

She covered the mouthpiece of the phone, and rudely said, "Can't you read?"

_Oh, right _he thought, looking at the sign. _Spell damage. Fourth floor._

She was in room 412. Curled to her side, knee to chin, her golden curls splayed around her. Her nose had matured from it's buttoned shape, it had grown to be a roman nose, like her father's. But her lips were still a perfect cupids bow, which she took from her mother. He rubbed his thumb over her pointy blond eyebrow.

He wasn't sad, and that was the hardest thing to face. How could he not care? How _dare_ he? But sleep was the only thing he wanted, so he took off his shoes, and curled up next to Katie. He could be sad in the morning.

* * *

She had woven in and out of sleep. It was hard to tell reality from fake now. She was seeing green flashes now, and hearing voices. Screams of, "Katie!", and choked sobs. She couldn't move, as much as she tried. Serious voices saying she might be in a coma, for the rest of her life. That she may never recover. She heard Fred once. George too. Alicia, and Angelina also.

But not _him._ Hadn't he found out by now? He had stopped owling her too. It wasn't like it was her fault. He got too involved in his work. Or maybe he met someone, and didn't need her anymore. But she still wanted him. She always had. He was cute, and nice, and they were best friends. But he made her heart melt, and she knew she didn't see him as_ just _a friend.

He had a gentle kindness about him that she envied. A softness to his voice. A certain charm, he even walked smoothly, almost like he was on a broom. She was harsh, and loud, and fast. They were the exact opposite, but apparently that wasn't enough.

And you know what really annoyed her? When he wasn't with the little Quidditch gang they had created, with Alica, and Ange, and the Weasley twins, he was with total snots of 7th years. They laughed, at "little girls" like her. He even called her a baby once.

She had always thought Ginny Weasley was sort of daft. Kind, but daft. A stupid girl. How could she trust a book? Why did she take Ronald Weasley's crap? And _why_ the heck did she keep chasing after Harry bloody Potter, when he was more interested in You-Know-Who, and snitches, and Cho Chang, than her?

But then she saw Oliver, feeling up a trashy, platinum blond Ravenclaw in an empty classroom, and she knew why.

* * *

He left a note. Saying he was scared. That he didn't want to take such a close risk in losing her again. Maybe she could move in with her, when she graduated. Maybe he could pull some strings, and she could wind up in Puddlemere too. He made a lame pun, and signed off with love, hoping she wouldn't think him forward. Oh, and PS-- don't worry, he would have done the same thing for any of his friends.

It was a nice gesture, but he knew it wasn't enough. He knew he had let her down. He didn't owl her. He didn't visit. He didn't even say hi, when he passed her by in Diagon Alley. He was completely cut off from her. He could probably never see her again. He didn't feel sorry for himself. He felt stupid.

He bent down, and pecked her on the cheek. And he walked out, and didn't turn back.

* * *

Katie had woke up, 5 seconds after Oliver walked out. She smacked her lips. Her mouth was dry and her cheeks were hot. She leaned over, and grabbed water glass she kept by her table. There was a sheet of parchment labeled, To Katie, in loopy cursive. She unfolded it, and scanned over it. Oliver did come come. He actually cared. She ran out of the room, a nurse tried to reason with her, get her back in her room. But she pushed her off.

"Oliver!" she shouted anxiously. "Oliver?"

For a second, he thought he was hearing voices, he tended to do that. Hear doors opening, over, and over, just because it was so quiet in his little apartment. But she was there. He hugged her, around her waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

He mumbled into her hair, with a shaky laugh, "I haven't been a very good best friend," intertwining his long fingers in her curls. Even sick, she smelled like freesia.

"Oliver, I really missed you. I thought you hated me. You ignored me."

He winced. She had noticed. She was hurt because of him, "I know and I'm sorry Katie. I should have owl-ed you. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay. I wanted to talk to you, I just... felt embarrassed."

"Why would you be embarrassed?" he asked curiously.

She blushed, and turned away, her heart pounding. If he didn't like her in that way, she could just ignore him, she repeated. Like a manatra.

"Well, you see... you're really cute. And sweet. And your eyes get real big, and sparkle when your talking about Quidditch. And when you brush up against me in the halls my heart speeds up, and I can't help thinking about it the rest of the day, and wondering if you're thinking about it too. And I'm sorry, and I know we're friends, and I'm young. And even though I'm in my 7th year, I haven't grown- _anywhere_- since third year-"

"So, in short, you love me?" he said arrogantly.

"Well..."

He grabbed her, and kissed her. Her foot popped, she was so happy. By the end of the night, it was clear- Harry Potter wasn't the only boy that snogged girls spontaniously.

* * *

Katie never fully recovered from her incident. Her right pinky shook, randomly. Completely spazzed out. Voices, repeated in her head too. And she suffered some short-term memory loss at times.

But Oliver stood by her side, all the way. And he never left her again.

* * *

***GASP* She's BACK? AND SHE WRITES OLIVER/KATIE?!?! Yes, people I do. I am back. And, I just recently fell in love with Oliver/Katie fics.**

**Well, I would much appreciate it if you would review. Much obliged, much obliged. If you could just pick out one sentence you kind of disliked/hated, and tell me why I would love it. Or, if you want to tell me if a sentence is crooked, or a character is acting funny, that's fine too. FYI, I already know it's really fluffy. **

**And also, like James Potter, I need a good ego fluffing once in a while. I would like to know if you enjoyed it. Or maybe just loved a specific part.**

**Oh, and if your still not motivated enough to review, I dare you to try to find the referance to pi in here. (Math pi). Mua ha ha ha ha ha. ;D**


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